All the more reason not to panic to trade up. Definitely something decent will be around at 6. If Draisatl wasn't German he'd be in the mix for no.1 overall imo. Shades of Kopitar all over again. Failing a trade we'd be very fortunate to add Draisatl to our mix.

ClamRussel wrote:All the more reason not to panic to trade up. Definitely something decent will be around at 6. If Draisatl wasn't German he'd be in the mix for no.1 overall imo. Shades of Kopitar all over again. Failing a trade we'd be very fortunate to add Draisatl to our mix.

If the Canucks' truly believe one guy fits their future better than the others and/or has a significant better chance to reach his "potential" then if they stayed at 6th they should do whatever is reasonable to move up. Now what is "reasonable" is of course debatable.

As for DD, the fact that he played in Canada and in the WHL and is not Russian, makes me think his nationality is not an issue at all.

I mean it's not like he's going to go threaten to play in the KHL (or DEL for that matter), right?

Island... I was thinking that same thing (Bure) a few days ago. If the Canucks really think he's THAT skilled, nothing else matters. The smug/swagger smile looks pretty good, too, and frankly, we've had fairly un-marketable stars for a while.

One thing i got from watching McKenzies preview last night is that there are no real top line guys. He even had Reinhart as a"good 2nd line" player. Not sure if you trade much to move up 5 spots and get a player who isint much better than what you could of had.

Ekblad is the only guy who had top player potential and even Bob questioned his offensive upside. Strange that we dont hear many teams looking to trade up to get him though.

black ace wrote:One thing i got from watching McKenzies preview last night is that there are no real top line guys. He even had Reinhart as a"good 2nd line" player. Not sure if you trade much to move up 5 spots and get a player who isint much better than what you could of had.

It all comes down to probabilities. Worst case scenario, The Son of Paul is a "good 2nd line" player. Best case scenario is "good 1st line player." Are the chances 50/50? Then you take your chances. I mean, in the entire history of this organization, how many opportunities have the Canucks had to draft a C with a reasonable chance to be a 1C during their pre-draft scouting assessments?

Off the top of my head. I think 3 times. Petr, Henrik and Cody. Petr ended up being a 2C, Henrik a 1C (eventually), and Cody (TBD but likely a 2C).

Ekblad is the only guy who had top player potential and even Bob questioned his offensive upside. Strange that we dont hear many teams looking to trade up to get him though.

Well, seven other teams have contacted FLA to move up. I suspect a team like the Oilers wouldn't mind moving up, or the Leafs for that matter.

Assuming no trades are made, here is what The red line report projects as the top six mock draft selections:

1. Florida Panthers — Aaron Ekblad. Assuming Dale Tallon doesn't flip this pick, the Panthers grab a cornerstone defender one year after passing on Seth Jones. While he's not necessarily a sexy pick at No. 1 overall, he will be a dependable two-way presence on this team for a decade or more.

2. Buffalo Sabres — Sam Bennett. Tim Murray's kind of player with the passion and fire to lead this club out of its collective malaise. Has first-line skills, but also provides the type of character the Sabres so desperately need after the train wreck of the past few years.

3. Edmonton Oilers — Leon Draisaitl. The Oilers have drafted a bevy of the same type of medium sized, skilled wingers in recent years. What they need now is a big, talented center to give them some strength down the middle and make those wingers better.

4. Calgary Flames — Sam Reinhart. Flames fans saw Sam's dad firing up the franchise for a decade in the old Smythe Division, and they happily add his impressive skill/hockey IQ to a forward group that is sorely lacking in both.

5. New York Islanders — Michael Dal Colle. The Oshawa forward is simply too skilled and creative to pass on here. Pairing him up with John Tavares would give the Isles their first legitimate top line in… we can't even remember — 25 years?

6. Vancouver Canucks — Nikolaj Ehlers. With the Sedin twins growing a bit long in the tooth, scooping up another Scandinavian scoring sensation provides exactly the kind of speed and pop the Canucks need up front. Jim Benning loves big power forwards, so it's hard to see him passing on Jake Virtanen and Nick Ritchie, but still…

This McCann kid is a Bo Horvat fast riser. Could end up being one if the top 3 players to come out of this class after all is said and done. Him, the swede Kempe and Ehlers could be the sneak steals of the draft. Dal Colle has bust written all over him. I want Draisaitl but he will go top 4. Virtanen has David blinders Booth written all over him the more I read his scouting reports. Craig Button didnt even have him in the first round.

Nicholas Ritchie is who we should be targeting. Big, tough, skilled. Perlini and Dal Colle and Virtanen are bust potential. I'd take Nylander or Kapanen ahead of them. Target - Ritchie, McCann, Ehlers. If they are gone target Nylander, Kapanen, Kempe, Fleury, Ho Sang

This McCann kid is a Bo Horvat fast riser. Could end up being one if the top 3 players to come out of this class after all is said and done. Him, the swede Kempe and Ehlers could be the sneak steals of the draft. Dal Colle has bust written all over him. I want Draisaitl but he will go top 4. Virtanen has David blinders Booth written all over him the more I read his scouting reports. Craig Button didnt even have him in the first round.

Nicholas Ritchie is who we should be targeting. Big, tough, skilled. Perlini and Dal Colle and Virtanen are bust potential. I'd take Nylander or Kapanen ahead of them. Target - Ritchie, McCann, Ehlers. If they are gone target Nylander, Kapanen, Kempe, Fleury, Ho Sang

Canucks will be picking between 9-14

With the exception of McCann & Ho Sang (a couple of headcases), Ritchie (taken way too early) and Perlini (better than expected) I nailed the Chef Boi RD pre scouting BIGLY TIME with the rest! Even Fleury and Kapanen are starting to play good hockey. Nobody goes 10 for 10 not even BOB McKenzie. Notice how I wanted Kempe, he's a beaut. You couldn't mention anyone to Bibbles Mckenzie unless his name was Nick 4 goals Ritchie

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